Beleaguered Broward Elections Supervisor Brenda Snipes Resigns

Brenda Snipes has resigned from her post as supervisor of elections for Broward County, effective Jan. 4, 2019.

"Although I have enjoyed this work tremendously over these many election cycles, both large and small, I am ready to pass the torch," Snipes wrote Sunday in a resignation letter addressed to Rick Scott, a governor she infuriated with her election mistakes, whether unintentional or deliberate.

Republicans jumped on Snipes, a Democrat, who oversaw the hapless vote counting effort in Broward County, for committing fraud by not following the letter of the law within her constitutional office. She dismissed all criticism as politically motivated.

She was quoted by network television as saying, "I can't wait for this to be over."

Florida's recount ended Sunday when all of the state's 67 counties -- including Broward -- submitted their final vote totals to Secretary of State Ken Detzner.

During the recount, Snipes publicly talked about stepping down.

"It is time to move on, to let someone else (do the job)" Snipes said. When a reporter asked whether she would resign, she said, "Well, I haven't finalized that. I'll just check with my family. They'll tell me what I'm doing," she said.

Snipes had a history of legal issues during her time as supervisor of elections for the county.

A judge ruled that she violated state and federal laws when she destroyed ballots too soon after the 2016 election, despite Tim Canova, a Democratic candidate in a primary race, taking her to court to preserve the ballots and a federal requirement that mandates ballots be kept for 22 months after an election.

She was also named in a 2016 lawsuit over the John Morgan-inspired medical marijuana amendment that was missing from some absentee ballots, and other suit in 2018 regarding when and how her staff could open absentee ballots.

Snipes was appointed to her position in 2003 by then-Gov. Jeb Bush after he removed her predecessor, Miriam Oliphant, for gross negligence. Snipes went on to win re-election four times, most recently in 2016.

Scott, the Republican Senate candidate, put Snipes at the center of his recount effort, suing her shortly before the recount began, and calling her out by name -- along with Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher -- during a televised statement on the steps of the governor's mansion.

Bush, the governor who appointed Snipes, perhaps sealed her fate.

"There is no question that Broward County Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes failed to comply with Florida law on multiple counts, undermining Floridians' confidence in our electoral process," Bush wrote on Twitter last Monday. "Supervisor Snipes should be removed from her office following the recounts."

Reach Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423. Twitter: @NancyLBSmith. CNN provided much of information for this story.

Comments

HOW, is this any ONES fault! This is the fault of an entire states outdated and antiquated voting mechanism. In this day of modern, instantaneous computer technology, WHY oh WHY, are we still voting with pieces of PAPER! Brenda's mission was was even more overburdened by a record voter turnout. Here we go again. Beating up on an official, when the system, itself, is at fault. Great! Way to go Florida.

Brenda was crooked for a very long time,...(by her own admissions along the way)....."Statutes of Limitations" will be the determining factor of her ability to avoid prosecution... We can only hope she's not successful,... so as to avoid future "election embarrassment" by UN-objective "Board of "Election Bureaucrats" !

Gov. DeSantis needs to appoint a solid Republican to this post to ensure fair and timely election returns. I would hope that FDLE would bring charges against Snipes to make an example of cheating, law breaking Democrats in this great Red State.

Good Luck, Ms. Snipes! The Republican state government over the past 20 years has shortchanged Florida's traditionally Democratic-leaning counties in terms of election budgets, equipment, and capricious rules and regulations wherein each Democratic Supervisor of Elections is left shoveling **** against the tide ... and it looks like there's at least four more years of that kind of anti-voter and Jim Crow-type treatment coming down the pike. Retire in peace, Ms. Snipes ... and thanks for putting up with all the bu**sh** for as long as you have!

Way to display your ignorance of the Florida voting system. All the voting regulations are run locally. Snipes has been voted back into office 3 times. She has admitted in court to allowing illegal votes to be cast, violated laws and court orders by destroying ballots, and routinely flouted other laws and requirements. Just this weekend she admitted to have lost 3,000 ballots.
But sure, blame her corrupted office on the GOP.

Way to display your ignorance of the Florida voting system. All the voting regulations are run locally. Snipes has been voted back into office 3 times. She has admitted in court to allowing illegal votes to be cast, violated laws and court orders by destroying ballots, and routinely flouted other laws and requirements. Just this weekend she admitted to have lost 3,000 ballots.
But sure, blame her corrupted office on the GOP.

Sorry, the "Traditionally Democrat Counties" have been short changing themselves for many decades. Look at that horrid excuse for a Sheriff in Broward County. This embarrassment to law enforcement took the easy way out, which is the real reason the avoidable Parkland shooting happened. His armed deputy failed to engage. When ballots from this election were found in the trunk of a rental car at the airport, this political hack shuts down the airport with a phoney bomb threat to hid the incident from the press. I could go on, but Broward County "soils" their Traditionally Democrat underware everyday. Broward county, the moral and ethical blight of the Sunshine State.

"traditionally Democratic-leaning Counties"? Yeah, sure - count 'em on one hand. It's the Super-Rich counties full of retired New York Bankers and Lawyers! They 'crats have NEVER, in those counties, treated their "swartzas" as equals, or called their pool=boys by Angelo names. For such RICH counties, they could BUY reliable, New Voting gear for every election in the Twenty-first Century! This "lady" was (and is) a turn-coat Racist of the highest order!